Improvement in egg-testers



E. HALLOWAY. Egg-Tester'.

No. 199,643. Patented Jan. 29,1878.

' WLL am 1,9 1.7L n n for 9@ @UM @MKM NPETERS. PHOTO-LITMOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON, D. C.

UNITED STATE sV EDWIN IIALLowAY, or BELVIDERE, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT |N I-:GG-TlIsI-IIRS.r

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 199,643,

dated January 29, 1878; applicationiiled August 20, 1877.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWIN HALLOWAY, of Belvidere, in the county of Boone and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Egg-Testers, which improvement is fully set forth in the following specilication and accompanying drawings, in which- YFigure l is an isometrical representation of an egg-tester embodying my invention, of which Fig. 2 is a plan view. Fig. 3-is a section on dotted line w, and Fig. 4 a section on dotted line y, Fig. 2, with some portions omitted.

The object of my invention is to provide an .improved device, consisting of the combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed, for testing eggs to determine whether they are fresh or stale, and to detect the rst stages of decomposition. For this purpose I have devised and constructed the tester represented in the drawings, in which- A represents a tablet, of rectangular form, with handle extension a, and constructed with transverse bars b, secured to its face, one at each end, to prevent warping. This tablet is provided with egg-shaped openings in its face, as at c. These openings are provided with opaque metallic facings, as shown in solid lines at d, of egg shape -and concave form, with flanges overlapping the face of the tablet, by which they are secured thereto. These opaque facings are designed to receive the eggs to be examined, and their concave form excludes the direct rays of light from `passing round the egg when in the opening.

The lower portion of these openings, on the face side of the tablet, are surrounded by a Wire-netting, of semi-basket form, as at e, its edges being secured to the face of the tablet; or they may be connected to the outer edges of the opaque metallic facings. These baskets serve to receive the eggs and hold them in the openings in the opaque metallic facings for the purpose of examination, and the wirenetting, made from line wire, which may be made wide in the meshes, does not obstruct the light to any considerable extent.

B are tubes, made from opaque plate material, and are secured to the rear face of the tablet, centrally over the eggshaped openings, a proper distance from each other to meet a persons eyes when placed in front of them. In use, these opaque tubes and opaque facings serve to exclude most of the light from the eyes except that received through them.

C are door-like flaps, hinged to the sides of the tablet, capable of swinging to either side, so as to form a right angle with the front or rear face of the tablet. These doorlike iiaps, when in the position represented in solid lines in the drawings, serve to assist in excluding the light from the eyes of the user, and, when in the position represented in the dotted lines, serve to protect the wire baskets.

In using my improved egg-tester, swing the door-like aps to the rear of the tablets, as represented in the drawings in solid lines, and then place the eggs to be examined in the wire baskets and openings in the tablets so that they rest against the opaque facings, and then hold the tubes in front of the eyes, facing the light, which will reveal the transparency or opacity of the eggs, clearly showing their good or bad qualities, from the fresh to the extreme stages of the spoiled egg.

I have represented my egg-tester constructed with opaque metallic facings and opaque metallic tubes; but any other opaque material may be used, such as paper, rubber, leather, or other suitable material, without departing from the principle of my invention.

In Fig. 4 I have represented the opaque an elastic rubber facing, g, which receives the egg h, and will be less liable to break them, and will adapt itself to the differentformed eggs, to effectively exclude the light from passing round them. This rubber facing may be used with or without the opaque metallic facing.

In practice, I have found a light from a kerosene-lamp, used in a dark room, produces a very excellent light by which to test metallic facings of the openings covered with eggs; but my tester may be used in daylight, Wire nettings e e respectively surrounding the orwith any convenient articial light. lower portion of openings c ins'aid tablet,`sub

I claim as my inventionstantielly as described.

The combination 0f the tablet A, tubes B, and the ring-facings d, both the tubes and EDWIN HALLOWAY the facings being mede of opaque material, Witnesses: and said facngs having annular angGS, i GEORGE H. GOVEY, which secure them to the tablet, with the MILTON E. KEELER. 

